Curtain-rod cap



5 7 1 Tm D Rwb N An TR. swn M F B March 2,1926.

W/ TNESSES ATTORNEY.

Patented Mar. 2, 1926 UNITED sT-ArEs PATENT orrics.

BRUCE M. STANNARD AND WILLIAM K. BISHOIP, OF BINGI-IAMTON, NEW YORK, AS- SIGNORS TO THE BREWER-TITCIIENER CORPORATION, OF CORTLAND, NEW YORK,

A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

CURTAIN-ROD CAP.

Application filed June 4, 1924. Serial N 'on 717,793.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, BRUCE M. STANNARD and WILLIAM K. Brsrror, citizens ofthe United States, and residents of Binghamton, and county of Broome and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in a Curtain-Rod Cap, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to improvements in a protector hood for vehicle curtain rod supports, particularly for'such curtains as are commonly used in connection with an open or touring type of automobile and in which an upright rod support for the curtain is removably mounted in a socket located near the outer edge of door rail and adapted to swing with the opening and closing of the door. The present improvements are more especially directed toward a simple but effective means for protecting the curtain fabric against wear and preventing the upper end of the supporting curtain rod from puncturing or otherwise defacing the fabric.

The object of this invention is to provide an intermediary blunted abutment element for the end portion of the supporting rod, which element bears against and is adapted to carry the weight of the side curtain. In the preferred embodiment, our reenforcing means comprises a supplementary dished hood for the rod cap made of stamped sheet metal having an integral clip or socket part disposed normally to the longitudinal dimension of the hood and adapted to snap over the end of the supporting rod and if preferred may be swivelly mounted thereon. The cap hood is kept relatively short and when attached to the rod end, this pro- 9 tector membertogether with the rod freely enter and pass up through the stitched or hemmed sheath formed adjacent to the vertical or swinging edge of thedoor curtain. The upper end portion of this sheath is provided with a closed or blinded end against which our rod protector hood is intended to thrust. therefore entirely concealed within said ourtain pocket while the hood portion of the cap is well rounded and enlarged with re spect to the transverse section of the rod end whereby the bearing surface thrusting upward against the blinded end of the curtain pocket is materially augmented.

The rod end reenforcement is Embodied herein are also other features of structure designed to facilitate the manufacture and application of said rod caps for the purpose intended, all of which will be set forth in detail hereinafter.

Reference is had to the accompanying one sheet drawing which illustrates an example of the preferred form of our invention; like characters of. reference indicate like parts in the several views, and in which drawing:

Fig. 1 is a partial perspective of an auto mobile body having a door and side curtain therefor equipt with our improvements.

Fig. 2 is a detailed viewin section of the assembled rod and. curtain members as taken along line 2E2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 represents an enlarged elevational side view of our elongated rod cap seen in Fig. 1, said cap beingdisengaged from its rod end.

i Fig. i is an enlarged end view of the rod cap as seen in Fig.

. Fig. 5 shows a sectional detail of the rod cap as taken along line 55 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a sectional end View showing the 'clip socket of our device snapped over the end of the curtain rod into its operative position and-is here shown as swivelly mounted thereon.

Fig. 7 shows a bottom view of Fig. 8.

Fig. 8 represents the blank'froni which our rod cap is formed up.

Fig. 9 shows a circular instead of elongated cap and also a modified method of fastening the cap to the rod end which is here permanently attached thereto.

, Fig. 10 represents a bottom view of F ig.

tached vertical edge of the curtain A may be buttoned in the position shownby any suitable curtain fasteners such as A while the outer or swinging vertical edge of said ourtain that opens with the door, is supported and sti'lfened by the curtain rod 0,. The lower end of the rod C may be mounted Referring first toFig. 1,*-the letter A represents the side curtain 111 its entirety, the lower edge of which curtain is mounted in a rod socket B as set into the horizontal face of the top door rail B in the conventional manner.

The transparent side curtain A is preferablv made of-suitable sash-fabric- A having its outer free or swinging edgeportion 1nturned or otherwise provided with ,annadjacent hemmed rod sheath. A the vertical stitching of said sheath being represented by dotted lines inFig. 1. The upper end of said sheath is then closed by stitching or by equivalent means to form a blinc l ed fabl ic pocket end A The curtain rod is mounted within the sheath A fiSlrShOVl], ands-inter mediate the rod end and the blinded pocket porti-on A weiprovi'deii301: a". reenf-orcing rod czipl), w ich capconstitutes an important feature of the present invention.

As is best shown :in detail'iin Fig. 3 and subsequent views thiscapr-omprises a dished hood member l) which consistsessential]; oilannelongated sheet metal structure preferabl having the ends'thereof rounded inwardly toward .the longitudinal HXlSiX-.X asshown. filler-medintegral with said hood or protector member-D are a pair got-depending clip parts: D :whichtogether form a resilient split socket element of ci-rcular contour havingits aXis'Y-i-Y disposed substanti allynormalto that of the head. axis Theseclips are intended to snap together so as to fitrsnuglysover the diameter of the end of the rod v I "Forthe purpose of. holding. the clip socket in.engagement with the rod, it is pr.eferred .to' provide. a rod groove or. notch LG; as is best shown in Fig. 3. r .lhena the rod is pushed into thesocket parts D as shown in Fig.1 6, :the groove C registers and. engages :with the inwardly ind ent'ed. nibs D5 formed in the cylindrical surface. of one: ori-both of the-clips "d ilhen 'thus engaged, theitop of the rod C is i-ntended. to have; {t-lSHlall clearance space with respect towithe transverse dished hood wallD but the snap en- !gagement of-the cap with the .rod .-is intended to be sufhciently stiff. to iallowzthese parts .to v be withdrawnas a unit tro'm ithe ffabrieisheath.IA The described method of .snappingthe demountable rod cap on. or. off of the rod has the advantage ofscheapness in l manufacture and also. allows for swivel action between said cap and its supporting rod, but when a permanenttie isfdesired-between :these parts, this can readilvbe accomlplishediby the use of athrough rivet'C as indicated imFig; 9.

Fig. 8 ,shows .the sheet metal blank? jfrom which the rod capis shaped. up. Thecentral --cr body. portionotthe blank. designated as D .isstamped to formthe described hood part of our cap while the extendin tleg portions are bentrup ands-rounded off. into the cylindrical 1 socket, members such as D [The longitudinal edges or the complementary =clips IJD running lengthwise of: the axis Ys-TY; are spaced apart somewhat as shown in Fig. 7 and the sheet metalused-formaking the rod cap is intended to possess suitieient, resiliency to provide for the desired snapaction ..between said clips.

It will be seen therefore that when the upper end. the. curtain supporting rod C is provided with our improved red cap, the cirrtainweight will. be well distributed over the available fabric surface and there will be no tendency for the rod end to wear or tear through the curtain. This latter defectis acommon.failing with rods not properly reenforced and permits the curtain to wrinkle and sag, besidesother wise :distiguring the curtainz-and greatly lessening the eiieetive-nessof rodin its supportingfunction.

The herein;described. device is designed. to overcome ths d'ziiiiculty in an extremelysinr pleand eii ective'v manner. It. will. be. evident from the preceding disclosures that the; described curtain.isheath -is to be made: wider than-the:desired length of theucaphood D measured along :the axis ;X'X., so as to permit the rod. and .its 1 hood reenforcement SiiQlJG/Pl'lSllGCl. up into the sheath pocket from .below. zfilhelrod capeis,houseduand completely concealediwithin thaupper portion ofithe curtaincsheath'and this featureadds materially. to. the neatness and finished-ap- ..peara.nce of thedooncurtain. It will also be apparentthat the rod reenforcementmay readily .be applied even -l iy..inexperieneed automobile operatorsand that it is; admirably adapted for the purpose intended.

Eat-willbe understood/the shape, ofthe'cap hood-roan; also; be made'ci-rcular instead of 'ie'longated and that-the .describedsoelret parts heed ;not..necessarily befonmed integral stherewitlneand S- that var-ions other iehanges in theldetails of our device may .be resorted itoiwithout depart-ingl-fromxthe. spirit and .scopeof curl-invention, heretofore described and. more particularly set forth in the: appendedv claims.

Claims:

1. In avehicle curtain 1 provided with a single substantially. straight blinded sheath pocket.. disposed aadj acentto; one marginal ledge ofsaid-curtain, aisupporting rodtherefor mounted within said-sheath and hav-in its .end lportioir abuttihg. theE'Iblind end oi athelcsheath, and an intermediary metallic protector cap. for'itherod endcomprising a transversely? disposedhood member adapted to thrush against the binded end of said pocket and. a socket member adapted to sembrace said rod 'end a-llof said cap members beinp; whollvconcealed within the sheath. and removable as a. unit through the :open: end-thereof. V

:QJIn a-veh-icle curtain-provided with a blinded "sheath. pocket'i'disposed adjacent to -.pne.1na-rginal edgegof the curtain, a-supporting rod therefor mounted within- Said' She'ath and havingits :end -portion abut-t-ing--' the blind end of the sheath, and aprotector cap concealed within said sheath comprising a transversely disposed hood member attached to said rod and serving to supplement the cross-sectional thrust area of the rod end for the purpose oi protecting the curtain fabric against puncture, said cap members together with the rod being removable as a unit through the open end of said sheath.

In a device or the character described, the combination of. a curtain of flexible material, having a vertically arranged sheath pocket and an upright support rod located therein, oi? a supplementary rod cap serving to reentorce said pocket against puncture by the rod end, which cap comprises a transversely disposed protector hood and a socket member formed integral therewith adapted to embrace the rod end, all of which cap elements being concealed within said sheath pocket and removable as a unit with the rod through the open end thereof.

a. In an automobile side curtain having a door curtain adapted to swing with the automobile door, a door rod of which one end is mounted upon and attached to said door, a metallic rod cap comprising a trans versely disposed hood and a socket member therefor embracing the free end of the door rod, and a sheath pocket member. for the curtain disposed along and serving to enclose the other end portion of the door rod and fully conceal said cap members, said rod together with its cap members being removable as a unit through the open end of said sheath pocket.

5. In a vehicle curtain provided with a blinded sheath pocket, a grooved or notched supporting rod therefor mounted within said sheath and having its end portion abut ting the blind end of the sheath, a de-- mountable protector cap comprising a hood member adapted to thrust against the blind end of said pocket, a resilient socket for said therefor mounted within said sheath and having its end portion abutting the blind end of the sheath, an interi'nediary metallic cap for the rod end comprising a trans versely disposed hood member adapted to thrust against the blind end of said pocket and a socket member for said hood serving to embrace said rod, and means for fasten-- ing said socket to said rod, all of said cap elements being concealed within said sheath and removable as a unit through the open end thereof.

7. In a vehicle curtain provided with a blinded sheath pocket, a supporting rod therefor mounted within said sheath and having its end portion abutting the blind end of the sheath, and a separable intermediary metallic protector cap adapted to embrace said rod end and having a hood. member disposed crosswise to the rod axis. said hood being larger than the rod diameter and removable as a unit with the rod through the open sheath end.

In testimony whereof, We have signed our names to this specification. V

BRUCE MVSTANNARD. IVILLIAM K. BISHOP. 

